Teaching and Learning for HIV Prevention

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1200 teachers mobilized to prevent child abuse and support gender-sensitive lifeskills

HARARE - In the wake of increasing reported cases on child abuse and the growing vulnerability of Zimbabwe’s children, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in partnership with the Ministries of Education, Sport and Culture and Higher and Tertiary Education, with an NGO the Flemish Office for Development Co-operation (VVOB) have embarked on a four year in-service life skills education and gender training programme for all teachers across the country.
The programme, which began with a five day training of more than 1200 teachers from 18 districts, was launched in the capital this week. The project will then be scaled up nationally.
"Teachers are the pillars of the education system and key change agents in Zimbabwean communities," said UNICEF Representative in Zimbabwe, Dr Festo Kavishe. "Through this programme we want to assist teachers to be more effective facilitators of life skills learning, promote children’s ability to say ‘no’, prevent and detect child abuse, know how to seek action, and to counsel children in need of care and support."
This in-service training programme, the first of its kind in Zimbabwe, will equip the teachers with skills to assist pupils in real life situations. The training will be in:
Learner-centred Lifeskills methodology – Teachers will strengthen their skills in using participatory methods to equip children with confidence-building, self-awareness, assertiveness, coping with one’s emotions, interpersonal communication, negotiation, decision-making and problem solving skills. These skills are critical for life in a world with HIV and AIDS.
Counseling - Teachers will receive basic counseling skills, so as to help pupils with the various emotional and social challenges they encounter.
Child Abuse prevention – Awareness creation of children's rights and how and where to seek action when these are violated.
Gender - teachers are being taught how to recognize gender sensitive situations in the classroom and how to deal with them to promote gender equity and empowerment of boys and girls in schools and communities.
While there is an existing national curriculum on HIV/AIDS, programme audits and field monitoring reports reveal that HIV/AIDS education is not being effectively taught in schools. In part this is due to the intergenerational communication barriers on sex and sex-related issues between teachers and their pupils. This is also because the school curriculum is over-loaded and teachers lack the necessary resource materials, motivation and supervision to deliver. This programme aims to remove these barriers to create a generation of well informed and balanced pupils.
This integrated life skills education and gender training programme aims to empower children to protect themselves most importantly from abuse. The AIDS epidemic and resulting orphan and economic crisis in Zimbabwe has made many children vulnerable to abuse. Despite a public outcry against child sexual abuse, a child friendly judiciary system, reported cases continue to rise. Anecdotal evidence from local NGO’s and clinics around the capital also show that there is a sharp increase in abuse. Last year alone, a local NGO recorded an average of 11 cases of sexual abuse in its area of operation every single day. School and community-based support systems remain weak.
"In these trying times, there is a growing need to make use of those people we have around us," said UNICEF’s Dr Kavishe. "Obviously parents must continue to be the front line in their children’s protection, but teachers are highly respected and spend significant amounts of time daily influencing behavoiur formation and development among children. This training gives teachers the know-how to play that role. Every community must continue to support and now ensure teachers have the respect and support they deserve."- www.kubatana.net